Last school year, students from all grades and classes looked on their phones between classes just so they could figure out where they had to go for the next period. Classes changed periods everyday, not allowing students to have any structure in their day, which they so desperately deserve. The working world has a structure and so does college. This caused numerous people to have discussions about repealing the drop schedule. This year, the administration had decided to return to the schedule we had in place just three years ago. What prompted this decision and how do students and teachers feel about this change? 

In order to answer this question, I interviewed the principal, Ms. Erhardt, who stated that there were multiple issues that helped to influence her decision to bring back a stagnate schedule. One such reason that was very important was how the drop schedule affected people with work studies and early college classes at NECCO. “With the drop schedule, kids weren’t able to do work studies as they had previously with the old schedule” said Erhardt. She also noted how the only positive of the drop schedule was that students gained an additional four to five minutes of learning time as opposed to the stagnant schedule. 

Ms. Erhardt also remarked that it was difficult for students that had issues with Executive Functions to follow the intricate nature of the double waterfall drop schedule. She did face some criticism from parents, students, and teachers about the abolition of the drop schedule but, overall, Ms. Erhardt said she had received mostly mixed reviews on a staff survey she conducted when she was first instated as principal.

Among the people that I interviewed, there are three different views that were the most prevalent. A majority of people said that the more rigid, structured schedule is better than last year’s. Junior Julia Bleichfeld said that “I think it makes it easier, especially with the new phone rule, to remember where you are going and what class you have next.” 

One teacher that I interviewed stated that there was a group of teachers that were vocal about their disdain for the waterfall schedule. This teacher did not name any people that advocated for the removal of the previous schedule. 

Some students are quite upset about the removal of the drop format with an anonymous student going on record as saying, “I really enjoyed the old schedule, not just because I did not have Spanish class on day six. I also enjoyed having a different schedule everyday to make it so that every day was not the same thing over and over again. It made things interesting.” 

This sentiment is shared by AP Government teacher Mr. Honer who said that it “Gave me more time to plan and it gave a more college-esque vibe to the school.” 

For the time being, it seems that the current, stagnant schedule will be the way going forward. This leaves the question of whether we should embrace the old schedule for the future, or lament on what once was?